Costly

The “most significant” and what likely will prove to be the “most expensive” rule mandating periodic inspections of interstate and intrastate natural gas pipelines is due to be published in the Federal Register today (Dec. 15) and will take effect 30 days later.

The “most significant” and what likely will prove to be the “most expensive” rule mandating periodic inspections of interstate and intrastate natural gas pipelines will be posted to the web site of the Department of Transportation’s Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS) Friday and published in the Federal Register on Monday (Dec. 15), according to OPS and pipeline company officials.

FERC’s proposal to place limits on the participation of regulated public utilities and natural gas and oil pipelines in intra-corporate cash management programs, or money pools, would duplicate existing regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), inflict higher administrative costs on companies and discriminate against smaller jurisdictional entities, companies said last week.

FERC’s proposal to place limits on the participation of regulated public utilities and natural gas and oil pipelines in intra-corporate cash management programs, or money pools, would duplicate existing regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), inflict higher administrative costs on companies and discriminate against smaller jurisdictional entities, companies said.

Williams could pick up some needed cash and finally end its costly affiliation with its former telecommunications unit by selling its shares to an unknown, deep-pocketed investor, according to news reports. Williams Communications Group Inc., which siphoned off its parent’s cash before spinning off, and then never turned a profit, filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year (see Daily GPI, April 24).

Williams could pick up some needed cash and finally end its costly affiliation with its former telecommunications unit by selling its shares to an unknown, deep-pocketed investor, according to news reports. Williams Communications Group Inc., which siphoned off its parent’s cash before spinning off, and then never turned a profit, filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year (see Daily GPI, April 24).

It was appropriately Halloween when the clock struck midnight for California’s electricity financing woes. A short-term, $4.3 billion “bridge” loan for buying wholesale electricity supplies reverted to a higher-interest, three-year term loan, adding to the costs of the state’s foray into power buying at a time when a statewide economic summit was scheduled to take place over the weekend to re-energize the state’s economy.

After power price spikes, contract defaults and costly supplydeals cost Cinergy $73 million in July, the company said it wasseriously considering quiting the supply business altogether. (SeeDaily GPI, Aug. 9, Aug. 11, and Aug.13) But CEO James E. Rogerssaid yesterday the company’s board of directors has unanimouslydecided Cinergy should stick with it as the industry moves to acompetitive environment.

Current and projected economics will not support any of themajor pipeline expansions to the Northeast from the Midwest atleast until 2004, a new study by Energy ERA, a Calgary, AB-basedenergy consulting firm, concludes. The Portland Natural GasTransmission and Maritimes &amp Northeast pipelines as well as thepipeline expansions currently planned in the Gulf of Mexico will besufficient to meet growing gas demand in the Northeast over thenext few years.